Recognition

There are about 498 middle schools in Colorado. Of those schools, only 3 have been recognized and honored as a 2018 Colorado Succeeds’ Transformational School. If my math skills serve me well, only one percent of Colorado’s public middle schools have been nominated, AND the great news is that Carbondale Middle School is one of those schools.

The Succeeds Prize is the state’s most prestigious awards and recognition event honoring transformational public schools and educators. “The Succeeds Prize gives us the opportunity to celebrate Colorado educators and recognize what is working in our schools,” said Steve Carter, general manager of 9NEWS/KUSA TV. “9NEWS has been proud to feature the 2017 winners on our network to share their stories with millions of Coloradans. Congratulations to the finalists for Transformational Impact; Colorado is grateful for your work.”

Scott Laband, president of Colorado Succeeds, said, “The Succeeds Prize not only rewards their efforts, it also shares these effective and scalable practices so educators statewide can benefit. We have learned so much for our 2017 winners and finalists, and the business community is coming together once again to recognize and reward these unsung heroes.”

Finalists for The Succeeds Prize are chosen by a Selection Committee using a three-step, data-driven process. The Succeeds Prize Selection Committee is composed of Colorado education, government, and business leaders. Ninety-five percent of committee members have taught in a classroom, led a school building, served on a school board or charter school board, or worked in a district or state agency. Winners will be announced at a live reveal celebration on Sept. 18, 2018 at the Ellie Caulkins Opera House at the Denver Center for the Performing Arts.

Transformational Impact in a Middle School

Finalists:

Murphy Creek K8 School – Adams Arapahoe 28J

Carbondale Middle School – Roaring Fork RE1

Denver Green School – Denver Public Schools

So what did we do that caused our small-town school to turn the heads of educational leaders in

our state? It turns out that there's quite a few things we do well. Here are some highlights:

Our teachers work really hard to ensure that every student every day has not only high quality learning experiences in the classroom, but also feels like they are a valued member of CMS.

Our students work really hard and it shows. Our English Learners surpassed the state’s growth by 13% on 2017 Math PARCC and our non- English Learners by 16%. In terms of achievement, in 2015, the average percent of students proficient and advanced on PARCC English Language Arts was 32.75%. This year, our average percent was 43%, an increase of 10.25% in 2 years. Similarly in math, our 2015 PARCC showed 22% of students were proficient and advanced and by 2017, 32.75% of students were proficient and advanced in math, an increase of 10.75% in 2 years.

Our staff fundamentally believes that if we want to maximize our children’s learning and opportunities for success in life, we need to prioritize a caring environment in order to establish a positive culture and climate for academic achievement.

Our school has adopted a set of skills called Habits of a Scholar which focus on intentionally teaching and practicing these skills. Students at CMS hone their executive skills, perseverance, enthusiasm, compassion, and teamwork on a daily basis through lessons, modeling, discussions, experiences, and reflections.

In our small town the entire community plays a stakeholder role. Both community partnerships and parent involvement are key to our students success.

In a nutshell, we have established a school community that deserves to be recognized for working hard and taking care of each other. It is how we operate every day. Thanks for being a part of this success.